Added histidine (His) in lactating dairy cattle diets has been observed to increase milk production. This suggests that histidine might be a limiting amino acid in lactating dairy cows fed grain and grass silage-based diets. However, there is limited data available on the effects of increasing dietary histidine on performance of lactating sows. A corn-soybean meal-based diet for lactating sows would typically contain a standardized ileal digestible (SID) His:Lys ratio of 40%. In this experiment, lactating sows were fed one of three diets containing SID His:Lys ratios of 40%, 50%, and 60%. Sows fed the diet containing a 50% SID His:Lys ratio tended to have increased litter weight on day 7 of lactation and the day before weaning. These sows also had the greatest calculated total milk yield when compared to sows fed diets with either lower or higher SID His:Lys ratios. Results suggest that increasing the SID His:Lys ratio beyond what is typically provided in a corn-soybean meal-based diet for lactating sows may increase milk production as evidenced by heavier litter weights on day 7 of lactation and the day before weaning.

Read the full article in the Journal of Animal Science.